Karen Ann Quinlan fell into a coma in April 1975, allegedly after mixing drugs and alcohol at a party. After she had been on a respirator and a feeding tube for about a year, her family asked hospital authorities to remove her from life support; the hospital refused. Her case was one of the first to call attention to the "right to die" debate nationally. The Quinlans were finally granted permission from the New Jersey Supreme Court to remove Karen from life support in 1976; amazingly, she lived on in a coma for another 8+ years until she died of pneumonia in 1985. (bio by: Joel Manuel)